Rickenbacker stigma

[Deleted member 264575]

Omg...I love that!

Omg, I love your Siberian Husky! (assuming it's yours.)

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

I've recently become the proud owner of a '80 4001 in Azure Glo. I played loads of them before I settled on this one. I've not come across a bass that has so much variation in build quality and shape. Some were right old dogs, but luckily mine has the best neck of any bass I've ever played, beautifully slim and fast, It's just right for me.

The bridge was hard work though. The saddles kept moving in the tail piece and because I'm a pick-playing palm muter the bridge was essentially useless and I've changed it for a Hipshot. plus my pick kept getting caught in the treble surround, so that came off and a Pickguardian (excellent service) went on.

My advice would be to try as many as you can and find the one that fits. I love the style, the tone and everything. Sure it's not a 100% ergonomic instrument, but I find it a lot of fun. I thought some of the brand new 4003's I played were excellent and would've bought one had I not got my 4001 for such a great price with blind luck.

Yes, the output is not massive, but that's what your gain knob is for, plus you can't beat them through a bit of valve!

Blue Rick = The Only Rick!

 

[Deleted member 264575]

Heh. Well, somebody's gonna be offended by that and while I don't blame them, I did snicker a little. :-D

No offense to Harley owners intended. I love them.

Sincere apologies,
Neal.

 

[depalm]

Really? Not sure I understand this.

Tried to play bossa nova with my Rick… Can be done but…

 

[Pudge Fish]

I've been on the lookout for one for so long. This year's Midnight is sweet. I had my heart set on Blueburst but "reasonably priced" isn't likely. MSRP isnt likely. Beautiful bass and rig billyapple

 

[Titania]

Wow. 4001S FL ? Cool. I checked youtube and there are no results. Do you have any idea where I could hear one? MBN! (must be nice!)

Thanks,
Neal.

I've promised a sound clip to the Rickenbacker group. We just got recording gear out again last weekend, so hopefully I'll have time to do a clip or two soon. I did the cap bypass mod, since I didn't like how nasally the bridge pup sounded. Played side by side with my 4003...it sounds very, very similar. A bit different character, but there's no mistaking that it's a Ric.

According to Paul Boyer's book there's at least one known 4001SFL...mine makes that "known" number 2. Not to say there aren't more out there, of course.

 

[Billy Apple]

I've promised a sound clip to the Rickenbacker group. We just got recording gear out again last weekend, so hopefully I'll have time to do a clip or two soon. I did the cap bypass mod, since I didn't like how nasally the bridge pup sounded. Played side by side with my 4003...it sounds very, very similar. A bit different character, but there's no mistaking that it's a Ric.

According to Paul Boyer's book there's at least one known 4001SFL...mine makes that "known" number 2. Not to say there aren't more out there, of course.

I did the cap by-pass mod on mine and it lasted all of 5 mins! It made the bridge pup loud and without defined tone. Plus both pups became unbalanced. I was so please to have the 'Ric' back when it came out.

But, at least I did it to see what it was like, so it stopped me wondering!

 

[lowphatbass]

I always was curious about Ricks but never played one in a store that I really even liked. Recently I snagged a really good, early Japanese copy for cheap that needed some work. It's a great bass, now I play a fakenbacker at classic rock shows sometimes.... talk about stigma!

 

[kcole4001]

The comfort angle is a totally personal issue that depends on your playing style, I've never found a Rick uncomfortable, but it's really down to what fits your own style.
They work for some folks, and not for others.
Here are mine:

 

[Mr. Wu]

My only issue with my 4003 was noise from the single coils. At certain venues it was tough to deal with ... I ended up putting some Joe Barden pickups in mine and couldn't be happier. Still has that Ric growl but without the annoying hum. I'm sure you'll enjoy your Ric. Don't be afraid to turn knobs on your preamp/amp as a Ric is a slightly different animal. Enjoy ...

 

[Deleted member 264575]

The comfort angle is a totally personal issue that depends on your playing style, I've never found a Rick uncomfortable, but it's really down to what fits your own style.
They work for some folks, and not for others.
Here are mine:

Wow, a beautiful collection of Rics. I'm especially getting GAS from the doubleneck. If you have a moment, could you please tell me the make of the stand that the blue one (left) is on? I've never seen a design like that. I'd appreciate it.

Cheers,
Neal.

 

[Jaco Taco]

I did the cap by-pass mod on mine and it lasted all of 5 mins! It made the bridge pup loud and without defined tone. Plus both pups became unbalanced. I was so please to have the 'Ric' back when it came out.

But, at least I did it to see what it was like, so it stopped me wondering!

Yeah, if you are a fan of Chris Squire's or Geddy Lee's tone, you HAVE to have that .0047 tone cap in there, otherwise there's too much bass to get those tones accurately. I have an 1987 8-string that didn't come with the tone cap in there as it was post 1985 so I had one put in recently and it's like "oh my god, it's a Ric finally!"

 

[mike77rios]

If a Ricky is the Harley Davidson of basses, what are Fender P or J basses? I'm just curios cuz they cost abt the same new. I mean American made ones......

 

[Korladis]

I play a Midnight blue Rickenbacker in my dreams. The only thing stopping me from pulling the trigger on one are the horror stories I hear about them all of the time. Are they really that much of a pain?

No. Not really.

Unless you dig your forearm into the bass body with such pressure that binding could injure you. In which case, the problem is your technique, not the bass.

 

[Deleted member 264575]

No. Not really.

Unless you dig your forearm into the bass body with such pressure that binding could injure you. In which case, the problem is your technique, not the bass.

I hit my knuckle on the horseshoe once. That really hurt. So I guess they can be a pain....

Cheers,
Neal.

 

[Korladis]

I would have loved to get a Ric 4001...until I played one Sounds great, but I don't find them comfortable at all, so I had to pass.

Yeah, I'm the opposite. Rickenbackers fit my hands perfectly, whereas Fenders tend to make my hands ache after a while. Probably just because by now I'm not used to them.

I took up bass because of Chris Squire so naturally, my first real bass was a Ric. I know many people find them uncomfortable but I never had that issue. Maybe because I didn't know any better as I was learning?

Having owned and played many basses now over the years, I still love my Rics and nothing sounds like them. BUT - their iconic bridge/tailpiece is primitive at best and is among the most difficult to set up of any bass I've ever worked on. On my '77, the dual truss rods don't actually move the neck. You have to loosen them, move the neck where you want it to be by hand or in a jig and then tighten the rods again. Many owners didn't know this and wailed away on the truss rods until they damaged the neck. This is no longer an issue in the later and current models though.

I have read on here that quality control is inconsistent though I have never played a bad one in a store.

So to answer your question, yes they can require a bit more effort than some other basses. However, once I got my '77 dialed in, it has been rock solid. The neck hasn't moved in years and it holds its tuning extremely well. In contrast, my Stingray is extremely friendly and easy to adjust but I've had it over a month now and I still haven't got the neck exactly where I want it.

Lots of old ones got messed up because of people not understanding the truss rods. The 4001 had truss rods that you have to loosen, then move the neck by hand, and then tighten again to keep the neck where you want it, as you mention. They are actually incredibly stable, but easily abused. Lots of people wrecked their Rickenbackers by just cranking on the truss rods.

That's actually the main difference between the 4001 and the 4003. The 4003 has more conventional truss rods. Lots of people, like you say, don't know that, though.

On my Rickenbacker, I use a Hipshot replacement bridge. The mute is cool and all, but adjusting intonation is not fun with the stock bridge.

However, all the issues that people whine about with Rickenbackers were solved, basically, with the 4004. And yet, it doesn't sell as well as the 4003.

A month is nothing Takes me a good 3 months, sometimes more, before I get comfortable with a new bass.

Yep, takes a long time for me to get used to a new bass, too, generally.

I have a friend that has a 4001 that occasionally lets me play it (when I ask him and he/it's free). He's never had any problems with it and loves it but Im not a fan of the tone (IMHO it sounds like it's being played in a hollow log) and it has horrid neck dive.

Besides. It only has 4 strings, and I've been playing 6ers & 12ers for quite awhile now.....

The hollowness to me comes from having both pickups on full up. I usually use just the bridge pickup by itself, or just the neck pickup by itself. Some people use both but dial one of the pickups back slightly.

Mine doesn't neck dive at all, sits perfectly balanced. I want a second one, though, to put in BEAD tuning.

Same here. I love that grindy thump they get acoustically...but that neck profile & all that chrome getting in the way of my fingers just puts me off them.

I love the neck profile, personally.

The chrome isn't an issue for me. The pickup cover is a nice hand/finger rest.

Hmm, I love the tone of them, Ive never played one that I can remember. I like long scale, thin necks that are narrow at the nut and I play quite a bit up past the 12th fret on all strings. Curious if a ric would fit for my tastes?

You probably won't like how they feel. They're not narrow at the nut. One of the things that makes Rickenbackers somewhat unlike Fenders and basses derived from Fenders is that Rickenbacker necks have very little taper between the body and nut. It's not that much wider at the 12th fret than it is at the first. Rickenbackers are also 33.25" scale, not 34".

While I'm not saying you couldn't like a Rickenbacker, it's not likely, given your tastes.

As others have said, Rics are not the most comfortable basses to play with, pickups are very low output, bad maintenance can ruin a Ric neck for good and they're not very versatile as well. That said, I just bought one from a friend. Jet Glow, perfect condition, nicely setup … couldn't be happier.

My Rickenbacker is actually the loudest of my basses. And the most comfortable, by far.

I actually find them much more versatile than many other basses. Three different usable sounds, just using the pickup selector switch.

I LOVE Ricks and had two in the past but not anymore. The only slight downfall for me is that as an exclusive finger player, there's not (to me) a real comfortable place for my thumb. Not a deal breaker though. I'd love to get my hands on a five string!!!

I usually rest my thumb on the edge of the pickguard, the edge of the body itself, or on the pickup cover.

Wow. 4001S FL ? Cool. I checked youtube and there are no results. Do you have any idea where I could hear one? MBN! (must be nice!)

Thanks,
Neal.

There are probably videos of the 4003FL, which should sound quite similar.

No. They are only a pain if you get one that's really bad and most aren't. Like any bass, you have to try before you buy. Remove the silly bridge pickup cover and rock out.

I actually prefer the pickup cover left on.

If you have the RIC bug, and have the cash for one, I say get it. Nothing sounds like a Ric. If you don't like it after a few months, unlike many other brands, you can sell it used for just about what you paid for it. I made money once selling a used Ric that I bought used myself, after only a year or so. No other bass I know of has that kind of resell value.

RIC's have the best sound of pretty much any bass I've ever played, and I've played quite a few. The problems with them become evident after the first hour of playing- they simply aren't very ergonomically sound, at least if you are used to Fender type instruments. The Midnight Blue had a reputation a few years ago of the paint bleeding over time, but maybe they fixed that.

I find mine quite ergonomically sound, actually. I prefer it to Fenders, specifically for how it feels. I could modify a Fender to sound like a Rickenbacker, or at least close, but nothing, so far, feels like a Rickenbacker to me except a Rickenbacker.

Blue Rick = The Only Rick!

Mine is also blue.

Tried to play bossa nova with my Rick… Can be done but…

Neck pickup. Done.

The comfort angle is a totally personal issue that depends on your playing style, I've never found a Rick uncomfortable, but it's really down to what fits your own style.
They work for some folks, and not for others.
Here are mine:

I love that 4000, and also the white one.

Yeah, if you are a fan of Chris Squire's or Geddy Lee's tone, you HAVE to have that .0047 tone cap in there, otherwise there's too much bass to get those tones accurately. I have an 1987 8-string that didn't come with the tone cap in there as it was post 1985 so I had one put in recently and it's like "oh my god, it's a Ric finally!"

Ugh. To me the bridge pickup is nearly unusable most of the time with the cap in. I greatly prefer it out. But usually I use the bridge pickup by itself, so that's probably why. Plus I'm not really after either of their tones.

 

[johnpbass]

The comfort angle is a totally personal issue that depends on your playing style, I've never found a Rick uncomfortable, but it's really down to what fits your own style.
They work for some folks, and not for others.
Here are mine:

LOVE that pic! Also love the Taurus pedals in your avatar.

 

[johnpbass]

Several years ago, I sent both of my pickups to Lindy Fralin to have them rewound. They wound them a bit "tighter" than original spec so my RIC actually has a bit more mid punch as a result.
Funny thing, to me anyway, is that most folks associate the RICs with having more of a "twangy" tone (Chris Squire-esque) but actually they can do the McCartney tone just fine!
On another note, I still kick myself for not picking up a brand spankin' new Chris Squire sig when I had the opportunity several years back. It was hanging on the wall in a local Mom and Pop store. Price was $1500 at the time. I couldn't justify spending the money but since now they're reselling at twice that price - well...

 

[Bim1959]

Satori. The hollow log sound I got was from either pickup. I didnt have them both up. That much I know. And the bass I played had horrid neck dive. Others may be perfectly balanced. The one I played wasn't.

And I'm not knocking Ricks. I was pointing out my personal observations. Not everyone likes the same instrument thank God, or else we'd all look alike and sound alike. But for those who like Ricks, hats off to you.

Maybe if a dealer in my area stocked some I'd love to try out another one and see if my opinion changes.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

A month is nothing Takes me a good 3 months, sometimes more, before I get comfortable with a new bass.

Thanks for that. I am at the 1 1/2 month stage where I was wondering if I had made a mistake. Night before last was the first time I really enjoyed my new Squire VM V J. So for have changed strings, had the frets fine tuned, and done a basic setup, but now I am concentrating on electronics.